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US Men's National Team (14 Viewers)

NewlyRetired said:
The high point of the Gold Cup for me was the first 15 against Jamaica (damn weather, it would have been nice to see if that could have been sustained).

The low point for me as the 20 minute time period after Morris's header was saved off the line against Mexico.  The US looked incompetent.

Berhalter obviously needs a lot more of the first and none of the second.  Being out played is one thing, being incompetent is another.
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is it fair to say he also got it wrong in terms of not reacting to tata's pizarro switch?

 
El Floppo said:
is it fair to say he also got it wrong in terms of not reacting to tata's pizarro switch?
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The team clearly took too long to see the problem, which really is his fault.

The bigger question is what should have Berhlater done?    If we had a real LB on the bench, I think that would have been the easiest switch to force Pizarro to have to get back but I don't think any of us trusted Lovitz nor was Berhlater likely to experiment with Lima right then.

You could almost say the mistake was in the make up of the roster itself.

 
I don't what is in the water in near Dallas but we need to replicate it fast around the country.

We all know that FC Dallas's academy is cranking out talent consistent and fast.

But this week, all the DA Championships were being played at multiple ages groups, both boys and girls and one name kept popping up over and over, and that was Solar Soccer Club.

I kook them up and sure enough they are based around the Dallas area.

It also makes you wonder what they are doing over in Houston to not produce any young talent.

 
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berndog said:
That was impressive
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The best part for me is that this is how he plays every single game. 

The defensive side is nearly complete.  If he can develop just a little more offensively to start converting the chances he creates into assist and goals, he is going to be impossible to keep off the field in Germany (or where ever the next step is).

And seeing how much he has developed in just the last 12 months, it is fair to expect a little more growth.

 
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Moe. said:
Yeah he needs to go straight to the senior team at this point, screw the Olympics. 
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Bradley is a defacto starter in the National team and he does not come close to this consistent two way play quality in MLS.  Pomykal really is earning a call up to a full sized camp.

 
NewlyRetired said:
New all touch video for Pomykal. 

You could break up this video in two parts and if you watched one part you would assume he had a good game as 6 and if you watched the other part you would assume he had a good game as a 10.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZtkxWzTN2o
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A couple after that was this "best dribbles 2016-19" for CP. Watched it twice. Gave me the jumpy and quo. That video is very hazardish- willingness to go at two defenders in tight space, change directions and speed in a microsecond, strong on the ball and just skinning people. Wub

Eta... juking the guy out of gravity at 6:35. :Wub:

 
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El Floppo said:
A couple after that was this "best dribbles 2016-19" for CP. Watched it twice. Gave me the jumpy and quo. That video is very hazardish- willingness to go at two defenders in tight space, change directions and speed in a microsecond, strong on the ball and just skinning people. Wub

Eta... juking the guy out of gravity at 6:35. :Wub:
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This is an awesome video.  I think we chatted about this vid last month but I could watch it ten times.

Donovan was faster than Pulisic in the open field but Pulisic is a significantly better dribbler.  I don't think his top speed is super fast but he gets to near top speed in like one or two steps.  His balance and acceleration is fabulous.

His next step to elevating himself from very good to great is sticking more chances in the net or for tap ins for others.

 
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
A couple after that was this "best dribbles 2016-19" for CP. Watched it twice. Gave me the jumpy and quo. That video is very hazardish- willingness to go at two defenders in tight space, change directions and speed in a microsecond, strong on the ball and just skinning people. Wub

Eta... juking the guy out of gravity at 6:35. :Wub:
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This is an awesome video.  I think we chatted about this vid last month but I could watch it ten times.

Donovan was faster than Pulisic in the open field but Pulisic is a significantly better dribbler.  I don't think his top speed is super fast but he gets to near top speed in like one or two steps.  His balance and acceleration is fabulous.

His next step to elevating himself from very good to great is sticking more chances in the net or for tap ins for others.
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Amazing dribbler, but sure could improve on his passing.  Will he be playing with better players on his team this year?

The biggest thing that jumped on at me is that he's hacked far more in league play than Concacaf games. 

 
BassNBrew said:
Amazing dribbler, but sure could improve on his passing.  Will he be playing with better players on his team this year?

The biggest thing that jumped on at me is that he's hacked far more in league play than Concacaf games. 
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This was called "best dribbling".

 
Wooten is expected to debut for the Union tomorrow night against RSL.  Some pressure on him to be the finisher that they've been sorely lacking.

 
Let's do a round up of which American's have a chance to participate in the Champions League this year.

*Weah(Lille), Adams(RBL) and Pulisic(Chelsea) are already in the group stage.

*Jesse Marsch (RBS) will be coaching in the group stage

*Horvath(Brugge) enters late in qualifying

*If Dest(Ajax) makes the first team, he will enter late in qualifying

*Aaron Schoenfeld(Maccabi Tel Aviv) enters middle qualifying

Celtic and PSV have American's in the system but they probably won't make the main clubs this season.

Am I missing anyone?

 
El Floppo said:
Loan or transfer?
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Transfer.  Just a 1 year contract though so this may be looked at as an extended trial this season I think.  I assume they paid next to nothing for him.

VVV said in the announcement he will not be playing for at least two more weeks as they await his permit from the government.

 
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This bit of news reminded me of something.

A German paper that was doing a Bundesliga preview said that Schalke are considering naming Weston Captain at only 20 years old.

===============

Speaking of captain, while ultimately meaningless, what do you guys think of the rotating arm band system Berhalter has been using?  I don't remember if he did this in Columbus or not.

 
NewlyRetired said:
This bit of news reminded me of something.

A German paper that was doing a Bundesliga preview said that Schalke are considering naming Weston Captain at only 20 years old.

===============

Speaking of captain, while ultimately meaningless, what do you guys think of the rotating arm band system Berhalter has been using?  I don't remember if he did this in Columbus or not.
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Ive never really cared about captains...in my playing days or subsequent viewing days. Go out and do your best job individually and in support of your teammates...armband or no.

 
That said...amazing that swag is linked to it. From an organization standpoint, it shows how much confidence they have in him. And that's the part that interests me the most.

 
NewlyRetired said:
Jonny Hulme‏ @HulmeJonny

Antonee Robinson talks with wigan put on hold after Everton's Lucas Digne picked up a knock on training
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kid needs to play... so let the talks resume again, please.

I mean- would be great if he could get PT with everton... but do any of us think that's realistic?

 
El Floppo said:
kid needs to play... so let the talks resume again, please.

I mean- would be great if he could get PT with everton... but do any of us think that's realistic?
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I may be a bit on an island but I am perfectly happy with the Championship. 

I think it is a solid level for many of our second tier players.  I would much rather have him play 90 every game for Wigan than hoping for an occasional Cup game for Everton.

 
Ned said:
Wooten is expected to debut for the Union tomorrow night against RSL.  Some pressure on him to be the finisher that they've been sorely lacking.
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We are at the point that if a player is American, and plays either striker or LB, we have to track him in this thread no matter where he plays...

I still can't get over that Wondo is still the highest scoring American in MLS....

 
NewlyRetired said:
I may be a bit on an island but I am perfectly happy with the Championship. 

I think it is a solid level for many of our second tier players.  I would much rather have him play 90 every game for Wigan than hoping for an occasional Cup game for Everton.
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Agreed.  

Do most equate the level of Championship with MLS??  I've heard that many think MLS is below championship, but I honestly don't know.

 
NewlyRetired said:
We are at the point that if a player is American, and plays either striker or LB, we have to track him in this thread no matter where he plays...

I still can't get over that Wondo is still the highest scoring American in MLS....
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belgium aside, I have full respect for the wondo/ching/twellmans of the world- guys who have a definite ceiling when the heat rises, but can consistently score against level competition.

and it shows how rare it is for that kind of player, and how useful they can be- we're not getting a ton of them. 

 
NewlyRetired said:
I may be a bit on an island but I am perfectly happy with the Championship. 

I think it is a solid level for many of our second tier players.  I would much rather have him play 90 every game for Wigan than hoping for an occasional Cup game for Everton.
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yeah- that's what I was trying to say. I have zero problem with the championship... it's basically MLS but with more opportunity to play with/against better competition, and possibly with a higher floor.

eta: and more importantly, I don't see robo as PL ready... and since he's still young, he just needs to keep playing minutes and learn the position/craft. wasting away hoping for cup games won't do it.

 
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blend said:
Agreed.  

Do most equate the level of Championship with MLS??  I've heard that many think MLS is below championship, but I honestly don't know.
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I think it is the noise.  If you want to argue it is slightly better, that is fine, if you want to argue it is slightly worse, that is fine too.  The gap is small enough that it is kind of inconsequential.

The key to these discussions is whether one is concerned with quality of league top to bottom which relates to the quality of competition the player plays against week in and week out, or whether one is concerned with the quality of the individual team which relates more to how much competition a player will have to even get on the field.

The top leagues have both, but for the rest, it is a mixed bag.  For example, because of the MLS structure, the league top to bottom is significantly better than say a Scotland top to bottom but there is no team in MLS where the competition to get on the field is as hard as say at Celtic.

 
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NewlyRetired said:
blend said:
Agreed.  

Do most equate the level of Championship with MLS??  I've heard that many think MLS is below championship, but I honestly don't know.
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I think it is the noise.  If you want to argue it is slightly better, that is fine, if you want to argue it is slightly worse, that is fine too.  The gap is small enough that it is kind of inconsequential.

The key to these discussions is whether one is concerned with quality of league top to bottom which relates to the quality of competition the player plays against week in and week out, or whether one is concerned with the quality of the individual team which relates more to how much competition a player will have to even get on the field.
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IMHO, MLS has some better players... and I think the league as a whole would fit well within the top half (eta- hedging here- top 2/3) of the championship. the bottom of it has teams that are legitimate 2nd division squads that wouldn't do well in MLS either. 

but the lack of relegation/promotion and expense/salary rise/fall means MLS can stay in that sweet spot while those top and bottom teams can't.

 
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Playing in MLS for development (not money, just development) has taken two clear paths.

* If you are a defender/defensive midfielder, I would never leave the league too early.   As a defensive player, each week you face Vela, Zlatan, Martinez, Rooney, Rossi, Valeri, Lodeiro, Nani, Acosta etc etc.  You get plenty of tests against a ton of diversity of skill and experience. 

* If you are an offensive player, it seems clear you may have to look else where.  Because MLS teams spends so much of their budgets on offensive players, almost all of which are foreign, the playing time needed for development just does not exist.   A young US attacker has a better chance of playing time in Europe, be it a second tier league or a lower team in a top league.

 
El Floppo said:
eta: and more importantly, I don't see robo as PL ready... and since he's still young, he just needs to keep playing minutes and learn the position/craft. wasting away hoping for cup games won't do it.
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This is where the conversation gets interesting and hard to understand.  Lets put Robinson aside for a second since I agree he is not EPL ready yet and as such he needs to keep playing at a lower level.

Lets instead talk about some one like Dest.

Is it better for him to drop back into Jong Ajax and keep playing or is it better to make the first team and patiently wait for his opportunity to come (injury, rest, suspension, poor play... what ever)?

I guess much of the answer comes down to whether one believes the player will do well or not once he finds that chance to play on the first team.

 
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NewlyRetired said:
This is where the conversation gets interesting and hard to understand.  Lets put Robinson aside for a second since I agree he is not EPL ready yet and as such he needs to keep playing at a lower level.

Lets instead talk about some one like Dest.

Is it better for him to drop back into Jong Ajax and keep playing or is it better to make the first team and patiently wait for his opportunity to come (injury, rest, suspension, poor play... what ever)?

I guess much of the answer comes down to whether one believes the player will do well or not once he finds that chance to play on the first team.
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I think Dest, given the extra few years of youth, would be well served getting a season playing up with senior team and getting day-in practice time with the people he's hoping to be and beat out. even barring injuries ahead of him- get some minutes and games here and there... and then see where he stands and how he's progressed. I'm not sure how it works for bouncing back and forth- if they have guys on the fringe that practice with the first team still play with the 2nd, or if it's not fluid and you practice where you play- even if it means not playing.

 
El Floppo said:
IMHO, MLS has some better players... and I think the league as a whole would fit well within the top half (eta- hedging here- top 2/3) of the championship. the bottom of it has teams that are legitimate 2nd division squads that wouldn't do well in MLS either. 

but the lack of relegation/promotion and expense/salary rise/fall means MLS can stay in that sweet spot while those top and bottom teams can't.
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MLS teams run from roughly the middle of the Championship all the way to the bottom of League One, if you believe the folks who try and measure these things quantitatively.

 
I am paranoid but the biggest thing for me regarding Dest is that we cap-tie him ASAP assuming he's willing to do that. I know he's been involved with our setup extensively but he's pretty much 100% Dutch - hard to believe that he wouldn't at least consider it if they came calling. Been no indication that they are intetested but cmon - they watched the U20 this summer. He’s on their radar for sure. 

 
Dinsy Ejotuz said:
MLS teams run from roughly the middle of the Championship all the way to the bottom of League One, if you believe the folks who try and measure these things quantitatively.
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There is no way to measure fairly when teams don't play each other.  

I do think there are a handful of teams that are League One quality.  

I don't think LAFC are a middle Championship side though .  Vela imo would be the best player in the entire league.

 
NewlyRetired said:
There is no way to measure fairly when teams don't play each other.  

I do think there are a handful of teams that are League One quality.  

I don't think LAFC are a middle Championship side though .  Vela imo would be the best player in the entire league.
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I trust a quant shot at doing this a lot more than an eye test, but I had it backwards in any event.  It's not middle of the Championship to bottom of League One.  It's top of the Championship (LA would be competing for promotion per 538), to the middle of League One.

 
Dinsy Ejotuz said:
I trust a quant shot at doing this a lot more than an eye test, but I had it backwards in any event.  It's not middle of the Championship to bottom of League One.  It's top of the Championship (LA would be competing for promotion per 538), to the middle of League One.
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That makes more sense to me.  

 
scuffed‏ @zlebmada

San Jose now sit 4th in the western conference and just demoralized the LA Galaxy at their house with more or less the same roster that won only 4 games last season. Matias Almeyda's a god.

======================

Jackson Yueill had another big game today for SJ.

As for the Almeyda back up plan in case Berhalter face plants early in qualifying, it might be in jeopardy.  A report today said that Ecuador is looking to hire him as their head coach and the report also said that Almeyda has a clause that will let him out of his contract if a national team comes calling.

 
NewlyRetired said:
scuffed‏ @zlebmada

San Jose now sit 4th in the western conference and just demoralized the LA Galaxy at their house with more or less the same roster that won only 4 games last season. Matias Almeyda's a god.

======================

Jackson Yueill had another big game today for SJ.

As for the Almeyda back up plan in case Berhalter face plants early in qualifying, it might be in jeopardy.  A report today said that Ecuador is looking to hire him as their head coach and the report also said that Almeyda has a clause that will let him out of his contract if a national team comes calling.
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Have you watched Yueill play? I don't think I have, but his name has been at the center of the SJ turnaround reports. His stats don't show him leading via assists or goals, so he must be doing all the hard work that might look nice next to swagadams.

 
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